‘Canadian troops in Ukraine could help train far-right extremists’

It is impossible for Canadian military personnel in Ukraine to weed out far-right militants when training, as some of the groups have been absorbed into the military, James Bissett, former Canadian ambassador to Yugoslavia, Albania and Bulgaria told RT.

RT:The Canadian government seems confident
that it can weed out far right extremists from the troops they
will be training. Do you share that optimism?

James Bissett: That is of course nonsense. They
will not be able to do that because some of the extreme militia
like the Azov Battalion and others that we’ve seen on your screen
are being incorporated into, or absorbed into, the Ukrainian
army, into the National Guard. How are Canadian trainers going to
make those distinctions between who are good guys and who are bad
guys? They simply won’t be able to and I don’t think they are
going to be trying very fastidiously to make that kind of
identification.

In addition to that we have given Ukraine up to now $500 million
and that money is not accountable. So we have no idea how it will
be spent. It is another indication of the old saying: ‘It is
inherently unwise to get involved into a civil war’. And now we
stepped out and got involved in one. It is a provocation to
Russia and it is unnecessary aggressive move, and bodes ill for
the second Minsk peace agreement.

RT:What could the consequences be for
Ukraine, if foreign military advisers are not thorough enough in
choosing trainees?

JB: If the training is effective and that is
debatable... If it is effective, they will be improving the
competence of these extreme groups and I think that is unwise
thing to do. Not only in terms of ongoing civil war, but making
it possible for the fighting and the bloodshed to continue.

RT:Why are they doing it?

JB: They are doing it to keep NATO viable.
George Keenan, one of the former US ambassadors to Moscow, has
said that if the Soviet Union should collapse the Americans would
have to re-create a new Soviet Union almost immediately or the US
economy would collapse. That is one of the primary reasons we are
seeing Poland getting into contract for Tomahawk missiles with
the Americans, the Latvians, the Lithuanians all beefing up their
military. Who has profited from that? Certainly not anyone who
would like to see some stability and peace in the world.